4 Web Design Trends Taking the World by Storm

Trends that You Will Want to be Aware of for This and Years to Come

Business has come a long way from the standard models of old that required an ad in the phone book. These days everything is online and with more and more businesses turning to a primarily web based platform, we can expect to see the continued evolution in website design. The avid website designer has to stay current with all of the trends if they are to stay competitive with the market. As we all know, design seems to change from time to time, so a study of the trends of the year is a good tactic when staying competitive.

Here are some of the website design trends that are taking over for this and the years to come.

Scrolling

There once was a time where website designers broke up much of the website’s content by adding additional pages to the website. The trend today however calls for fewer pages with more content. The use of the single page on a standard phone or mobile device can be a bit of a distraction with the need to click on every aspect that you want to see. In addition to the distraction that this can cause, it also leads to small buttons being unable to be accessed by those with large fingers. We have all had the unfortunate event where we attempted to click one thing and came up with something completely different.

Today website designers are jumping on the scrolling bandwagon. Instead of offering an array of clickable pages and objects throughout those pages, they are offering users the chance to do what they already do every day on social media with the ability to simply scroll through the information they seek.

Minimalistic Style

The websites that we have grown accustomed to have truly evolved throughout the years. During the dawn of the website age as we know it, there was competition to have the flashiest website around. Bright colors and lavish artistry seemed to take over the pages and load times were expected so you could get the full experience of the overall website.

We now live in an age where people do not have time to wait on a page to load. It is estimated that a person will wait on average around 6 to 10 seconds for a website to fully load and anything beyond that does not get seen. More often than not the user will simply leave before they have had a chance to see anything within the site itself. Minimalism is now taking over. Simplified 3D models and GIFs are taking over throughout the website design industry because load times are far lessened and compatible on more platforms.

Real Photography

Standing out online is much more than offering services that no one else has. It is about true originality. For years, designers have relied on clip art and stock photos that they are able to use on websites to add a more humanistic quality, but many of these images have simply been overused therefore there is no real personality within their use. These sources for photos of real people are now being replaced with true originality.

Photography has taken a huge hit with the use of digital cameras and therefore much of the art has been lost, but photographers are finding new mediums for their art form by coupling their skills with many website designers. The photographers are taking photos of both people as well as the products that are being sold on the website. These photo sessions are enabling the website to contain live shots of real people using the product giving the product true personality and the website a depth that cannot be manufactured by stock images.

Bolder Icons

Icon usage can be overdone if the designer is not careful. The use of icons is made to be simple and distinct. These seemingly small aspects of website design have often been put at the bottom of the page or tucked away from the main focus, but now we are seeing a trend of much bolder icons becoming the center of attention. In the desire to utilize the minimalistic style, website designers are using icons to keep down load times and direct customers to the appropriate page easier and faster.

Website design will continue to evolve over time and these current trends may be obsolete in the next few years. The avid website designer needs to continually be on the lookout for trends that effect their craft and look at more about a website than just its standard content. As more people turn to mobile devices and away from the standard computer, we will continue to see websites cater to the mobile market making the standard website in need of an upgrade.

Douglas Siclari is CEO of the Siclari Studio of Art and Design. With over 15 years in the 3D arts and multimedia world, he has worked with some of the top 3D websites and blogs. He serves as Digital Marketing Consultant for CGTrader, a 3D model marketplace for computer graphics, 3D printing and virtual reality.